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• • August 26, 2013 at 8:12 am #65009
    Kirk Dickinson

    Member

    Trying to figure out how to use Find/Change to search for every instance of text that if formatted in Italics and put brackets around it. The reason is that I am trying to use InDesign to convert my music chord charts to a format that I can use on my iPad called OnSong.

    Many chord charts I get are formatted in a monospaced font with the chords above the lyrics. The OnSong format has the chords inline with brackets around them. When it displays on the iPad, it puts them above. The OnSong format assures that chords don’t get moved from the correct places.

    So, if I could open my music file and either assign italics or some special character style to all the chords, then drag them down into the text where they go. (wish ID could drag in this instance, but realize why it probably shouldn’t for most other things.) Then run a find change where it says: find all *special formatted* replace with [OriginalChord].

    InDesign may very well be not the program to do this in, but since I use it everyday, I though I would try it here.

    Thanks,

    Kirk

  • August 26, 2013 at 8:53 am #65011
    Kimmi Patterson

    Member

    If I understand correctly, you could run a GREP search for the italic text, and replace it with [$1] (open bracket-found text-closed bracket).

  • August 26, 2013 at 10:52 am #65014
    Kirk Dickinson

    Member

    I must be doing it wrong. When I run the Grep Search, it replaces my italitized text with the brackets and the $1, not the original text.

    Thanks,

    Kirk

  • August 26, 2013 at 11:55 am #65015
    David Blatner

    Keymaster

    If you want to do this for all italic text:
    * choose the GREP tab at the top of the find/change dialog box
    * type (.+) into the Find What field
    * use the Find Formatting area at the bottom of the dialog box to find italic text (or the italic character style you’re using, or whatever)
    * in the Change to field, type [$1]

    Hit change all.

    it didn’t work before because you didn’t have anything to find before. You need something in parenthesis in find what.

  • August 26, 2013 at 12:18 pm #65016
    Kirk Dickinson

    Member

    Thanks David. I knew there had to be a way. I know GREP is powerful but have never taken the time to learn how to use it.

    Thanks,

    Kirk

  • August 26, 2013 at 1:06 pm #65017
    Kimmi Patterson

    Member

    Sorry, Kirk, for the half answer!

    Thanks for stepping in, David! :)

  • August 26, 2013 at 1:37 pm #65018
    David Blatner

    Keymaster

    @Kimmi: No problem! I actually thought your method would work at first; but then when I tried it, I remembered that $1 won’t work until you actually find something — and even then, only the part that is inside the parens.

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